The Heaven's Gate
by black-klepon
Summary: The death of several Amestris soldiers and the Gate's demands is only the first step that would shook the entire Central Headquarters. And maybe the Gate wasn't too bad after all. Roy/Ed
1. Chapter 1

Okay, so this is my first try at FMA fanfic, taking place after the movie left. As you can see, this is Roy/Ed, although that's eventual. Maybe later I'll try and put some more others with different pairings, but for the mean time I guess Roy/Ed will be the one that I clung onto. Without further ado, I hope you enjoy my first try!

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- Chapter 1 -

The busy afternoon life in the city of Munich did nothing to reduce the coolness, although it could still bring a quite annoying headache to a certain blond sitting inside a café. The café itself was located pretty far from the center of the city, and was quite vacant.

Edward stared at the white porcelain mug in front of him, steam floating from the black coffee below. He sniffed the steam, the sharp scent filling his nose. He exhaled, and raised his automail to support his head. His eyes wandered around the interior of the café, two couples were busy chit-chatting with each other, and several ancient-looking furnitures with dim lighting added to his boredom level. He turned his head back to the mug in front of him, and sighed. He still had about half an hour before Al would come out from the college, and he didn't really have anything to do, so that's why he had ended up here. He brought the white mug to his lips and sipped the black liquid, savoring the taste and letting it flow down through his throat, warming his body.

After finishing half of the contents, he placed the mug back onto the table. He didn't feel like emptying the mug, and walking to his brother's college would take him approximately 15 minutes, so he stood up and left some money on the table. The door clunked closed behind and cool winds immediately welcomed him. Shivers ran up his spine, and he looked up warily to the grey sky. It seemed like it would start snowing again soon, so he hurried as he headed up to the college, hugging himself as he walked. At times like this, having automail is a bit annoying, those metals absorbing the coldness quicker than your body. He wore his grey jacket around himself, red scarf circled around his neck.

Edward finally arrived at his brother's college, after several times of nearly crashing into someone. None of the students seemed to be out already, so he decided to stroll around the park, until he found an empty seat. His body fell gracelessly to the cold wood, taking the medium-sized chair only for himself. Closing his eyes, Edward leaned his head to the hard steel grip. His mind flew farther away, out of this world and passing through the Gate, and landed into Central-his _home_.

Alphonse ran through the crowds of people, arriving outside the college a minute later. His breaths came out as a white mist, and he began turning his head a bit frantically to search for his brother. He sighed in relief as he found the almost-covered-in-snow footsteps of his brother, and followed the tracks until he found Ed on a garden chair, looking like he was asleep. Normal people may have thought so, but Al knew better than them. His brother is not asleep… he's thinking about his home-_their_ homeland.

Al felt kind of bad to wake his brother up from his thinking, but they needed to head back to their house. So he approached his brother slowly. "Brother?" he called quietly.

Ed, hearing Al's voice, cracked open his right eye slowly, followed by the left one. Slowly, he lifted his head up, and messed his hair, not caring about the braid. Now in a complete sitting position, he could see his brother clearly. He let out a tired groan from the pain of his back, and finally dragged himself down and off the chair. "Come on Al… let's go home."

Al noticed what state his brother was in, trailed behind him quickly, and asked, "what's wrong, Brother?" He'd been living with Ed long enough to know that there's something bothering his brother.

Ed slowed his pace a bit but said nothing, instead just shrugging it off like nothing. Except that it is _not_ a nothing, but a very important matter. He shoved his hands into the jacket pockets, his automail was starting to get cold.

Al's expression turned softer, and he paced to get at his brother's side. "You know, Brother, if there's something bothering you, you could always tell me. I'm here to listen and help you, because isn't that what brothers are for?"

Ed slowed into a stop, and turned to face his brother. He stared deep into his brother's eyes, as if searching for something… an answer. He closed his eyes and continued to walk to the car park, muttering, "later, Al, I'm… not really ready to tell you just yet. Maybe later, when we get to the car, or the apartment."

Al said nothing more, leaving his brother to think about the problem as the two of them walked the path to their vehicle. They entered the black vehicle and Ed turned it on; the engine roared to life, bringing the machine forward.

Ed took off his red scarf and threw it carelessly into the empty seat next to him, since Al was sitting in the back seat. He turned the heater on, feeling warmer already. As they passed the roads and buildings, Ed saw the reflection of his brother from the head mirror. He mustered some self-confidence to talk about this to his brother, and so he called slowly, "Al?"

Hearing his brother, Al answered, "yeah?"

Ed bit a bit of his lower lip but went unnoticed by Al. "I was just wondering… will we ever be able to return to Central-I mean, Amestris? It's not that I hate this place, it's just… ah, how am I supposed to tell you?"

Truth be told, Al was caught a bit off-guard when Ed asked that question. Being here for almost two years now, and never once Ed asked something like that. He was going to ask _why, Brother?_ first, but decided against it. "I hold the same hope as you do, Brother, to be able to return to Amestris someday, somehow… I miss the country badly, and our friends there. I want to see them all again, to use alchemy again, to have the _real_ thing again, not any imagination or dreams." Al sighed, then continued, "it's like a part of me is missing, and could never be filled with anything from this world…"

Ed lifted his automail hand, and stared at it for a moment before returning his attention to the road. He let out a sigh also, and said, "it's all the same for me, Al… I miss our home. Miss the wrench goddess, old Auntie Pinako… I even miss the colonel bastard." Ed paused, as if letting those words evaporate first, before continuing under his brother's soft gaze, "I need my automail repaired. And however hard I try to adapt, I still can't throw away the feeling to use alchemy sometimes… I guess it's the side effect of being an alchemist." Ed finished with a bitter chuckle. "Aside from the fact that it robbed us from our dearest things."

"It did rob us from things we loved, I agree with you, Brother." Alphonse moved his eyes to the passing vehicles and buildings, before continuing with a softer voice, "but then, we wouldn't be able to be here, in a place like this, in a state like this. It robbed us of our mother, then it gave something else for us to live in. The Gate is unfair at times, I know, but when you think about it, having a brand new experience because of our loss, it pays off also, even though not fully."

"Equivalent exchange, right?" Edward confirmed, and after Al nodded invisibly, spoke again, "even still, I couldn't help but to believe in it… that we have to lose something to gain something, despite the fact that sometimes the theory we've always believed in needed us to pay an even greater price." Edward sighed, "blasted theory and Gate."

Alphonse twiddled his fingers, and stayed silent for some time. Instead of replying, he turned to face the car window. Before his brother had asked him about Amestris, he had already tried to forget about it… but however much you hated the country you were born, home is always something you'll miss.

Noticing Al's sudden thinking state, Ed waved his flesh hand at Al, saying, "drop the topic, Al. It's not interesting anymore." But he was lying.

Alphonse merely nodded, the look in his eyes said otherwise. Al knew, when Edward asked something like that, then there must be something bothering him very much. "I promise we'll eventually find a way back home, Brother. I promise you that with all my heart, mind, soul, or whatever I am worth of." Alphonse said firmly, eyes staring at the back of Edward's neck intently, which he could guarantee Ed could feel. His brother had some sort of a very high sense of surrounding… and an awesome instinct.

Had Ed not been driving, he'd probably stop for one second before continuing again. He just cracked a sad smile, contemplating about the possibilities of their return to Amestris.

The black vehicle skidded to a halt in front of their apartment, letting Al out first. Edward parked the vehicle in the small field next to the apartment, and then followed Al with his jacket on his right shoulder. He spared a glance to the snow-covered surroundings, before entering the orange-lighted room inside, eyes searching for Alphonse. He found Al near the stairs, waving a hand at him, so he ran up the stairs along with Al.

Unlocking their apartment door, Alphonse flicked on the switch, Ed slumped into the black, long couch. Their apartment was big enough for the two brothers, even with the cheap price.

Two bedrooms with single beds, each packed with a small bathroom; a kitchen complete with the utensils; medium-sized living room and a balcony with a view to the outside… what more could they ask for? The apartment itself was owned by an ex-military doctor, whom had been surprisingly nice to the siblings, giving a cut of price to them. Sure, it was located on the outskirts of the city, being more like in a village or something… but that's what Edward and Alphonse were looking for. Their neighbors were also friendly, sparing halves or parts of their food, even though both Elrics are able to buy their own. Living in Munich also taught Edward something new… the art of cooking. Alphonse has yet to study, but for the sake of the living being nearby, Edward must _really_ watch Al when the word 'cook' is mentioned. He won't give Al another chance of the kitchen blowing up, black with ashes, and smoke on the windows. That's another thing Ed must thank the old man for… he even bought them a new stove and refrigerator without asking them to pay! Sometimes Ed wondered if the grandpa knew about them…

Al poked his head out of his bedroom's door, peeking out at his brother. The said man was currently lying on the couch like a dead man, flesh hand covering his face. Feeling his stomach's urge to grumble, Al cleared his throat and called, "Brother? Can we have dinner?" Waiting for a reply that never came, he continued again, "or should I make one?"

In a flash of movement Edward was in the kitchen already, jacket now replaced by an apron. "You stay out of the kitchen, Al. Never touch anything again until I allow you, except for the one and only refrigerator left. No touching the stove, or anything like that. When dinner is ready, I'll call you… and in the mean time, you might turn on the television or the radio, whichever you prefer." Edward commanded.

Al just grinned at the reaction his brother had given, believing that Ed wasn't exaggerating about the fact that he and the cooking world weren't meant to be together. He slumped to the armchair for a minute, but stood again to go to the kitchen to grab a cup of tea. After returning from the kitchen, he turned on the TV.

About 15 minutes later, Edward appeared from the kitchen, plates on both hands. The scent called to Al, who immediately went to the dining table.

Edward took off his apron and threw it somewhere, shrugging, and sat on the ancient-looking chair. "This is the only thing I'm capable of making right now… while you go to college tomorrow, I'll go find us some cooking ingredients. The refrigerator is out of content right now, so just enjoy the dinner."

Al scooped up a spoonful of fried rice, munching it for a very short amount of time, before gulping and eyes widening. "Are you serious Brother? This is the best fried rice I've tried! Even better than those that they serve in restaurants!" Al took a spoonful of the rice again, before continuing, "where did you learn how to cook fried rice with this kind of quality?"

Edward just grinned, and took a spoon of the rice for himself. "Being an older brother has its good and bad also… this is one of the good things you get." Edward opened an eye to see his brother eating gluttonously, "from the gypsies before I went to Central the last time…" Ed trailed off at the sudden look from his brother and turned to face the dawning dusk, "before you came."

Al merely stared at his brother, before putting his spoon and fork down. Sighing, he said, "really, Brother," Al paused, and when Ed turned to face him, continued, "I know that there's something that's been bothering you for a while now. You can just tell me, or is it something too private for me to know? I'm here for you, you know. That's why I decided to follow you here in the first place, even though I could have just stayed back in Amestris, not leaving my used-to-be happiness there. If you're not going to tell me, are you just going to save all those thoughts for yourself? Humans are living social beings, Brother, we need each other to continue living."

Letting the spoon and fork clunk onto the table, Edward looked down towards the plate, his brain working on what should he tell Al. It's true, if he kept more of these feelings, he'd go nuts someday later.

Al was waiting patiently for the answer to come. When his brother seemed like he was ready to tell him, he braced himself for the reply.

Edward took a deep breath, before staring right into his brother's eyes with a force that could bore a hole through the wall if possible.

"Ever heard of the word 'sick' and its meaning, Al?"

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Well, that's it. Updates are probably going to be slow... but please bear with me? Reviews and critics are greatly appreciated!


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Note: To make this clear, this story is an AU. And by that, regarding Al's age... he's 18 going 19. And about Noa, since I won't be putting this in the chapters, she had left the Elrics to continue on her job/work or whatever. I suppose... with all that cleared up is it clear now? Hopefully yes.

Then I hope you all enjoy! ...despite my -very- late update.

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- Chapter 2 -

The morning market only consisted of several people at this hour, people going to work, college, or anything else humanity knew about ways to keep surviving.

Edward was among one of the people in the market, having had his refrigerator out of contents last night. He'd dropped Al at the college earlier on, and since he'll be going out later, probably at noon, he might as well buy things for their survival… and in this case, food.

After the not-so-long explanation for Alphonse, Edward was exhausted, having to answer Al's question and cutting in every time he finished saying something that his brother felt important. But he wasn't going to let all of them be known by his brother, so he had altered a few things from the original version. While he explained the problem last night, Ed could sense that Al knew that he was hiding some of the facts, but he had let Ed go on and tell him the story. Edward had cut the last part though, and after several protests from Al, he had promised to tell him the last part later on… today, tomorrow, or anytime he felt like it, if Al didn't force him to again. Sleep had claimed him instantly the moment he closed his eyes last night.

He stared at the apple in his hand, as if the red thing had eyes on it. Twirling the said fruit in his covered automail hand, Edward opened his mouth to let a sound of protest out.

"Twenty marks for _one_ apple?" Edward stared at the seller, "you've got to be kidding me."

"That fruit that you are currently holding is real, mister," the seller somehow glared at the blond in front of him, "and so is the price you mentioned earlier."

Scratching the back of his head, Edward considered for a bit longer whether to buy the apple or not, but he took out his wallet at last. The seller accepted the payment without much complaint, so Ed sauntered over to the next aisle of the market.

After wandering here and there for some time, Ed went back to his car, taking approximately 10 minutes just for the walk. He dropped the bags to the back seat, heated up the car, and directed himself towards the government office. His leather jacket soon followed after he'd turned the heater on, things thrown carelessly to the back seat.

One of the things he hated about this world was the traffic. It does not know time, place and way, but it will always find a way to place itself among the hectic lives. So here he was, stuck in one of the worst traffic spots in Germany. The cold wind blowing outside couldn't even help to cool down the heat rising in the center of the traffic, but it did a great job in preventing people from hitting their klaxons.

And since he had nothing better to do, Ed tapped his fingers against the steering wheel, head above the space between hands. Staring at the cars in front of him, Ed muttered incoherent things about '_damned world that wouldn't allow the usage of alchemy_'. If alchemy was allowed and he was able to use it here, Ed would've just transmuted an over-the-head pathway only for himself; or just create a huge, gaping hole that would swallow those annoying cars right here and now.

Back there in Central, he didn't have to worry about anything such as traffic, all he really needed to worry about - even though not really - was how to get into Headquarters on time. But again, he and Al always had an exception from the man in control and in charge of the Headquarter… that was a privilege he loved.

Not needing to do boring paperwork and meetings, and while being a State Alchemist under the Colonel's command was sometimes annoying as hell, the man tended to give them the freedom to conduct the research… and by that allowing Ed to gain access to the National Library. If it wasn't because of him, when he first came to Risembool several years ago… Ed wouldn't end up here. He hated the fact, of course, but deep down, when he thought that had the Colonel not visited him after the failed human transmutation, he would had no clue as to what to do. Al probably would have stayed as a suit of armor, and they wouldn't know the unknowns behind the Homunculi and the Philosopher's Stone. The man is a bastard at heart for sure, but nonetheless, he is helpful when needed.

…And since when had he started thinking about the Colonel? He was thinking about the alchemy use in this world at first… so how in the name of Gate did he end up with the thought of the smug bastard?

Shaking his head to erase the thought, Ed barely noticed that he'd spent almost 10 minutes merely for the thought… and they haven't even moved at all! Ed let out a long sigh, his hands falling freely to his side. He turned to the back, rummaging through the brown sacks, trying to find something to fill his stomach, even though he's not hungry. His automail hand touched something, and so he took the thing out.

Turned out to be the very apple he'd protested about. Twirling it again - a new, strange hobby he'd recently found out - Edward was about to get a bite when they finally moved… only for less than a meter. He decided that until they moved further than a meter at the very least, he wouldn't press the gas and let anything interrupt his effort to eat the apple.

After one and a half hours stuck in the traffic, Edward was only several meters away from the end of the traffic… which will approximately take him 10 more minutes. The apple was done, and the leftover was inside the garbage can he happened to pass by. The traffic itself guaranteed that nothing will move for about 5 minutes, so Ed had got out of his car to throw the garbage away and grab something else to eat - to kill time to be more precise. Those sacks in the back seat were for home-cooking, so he had restrained from finding even more to eat out of the sacks.

As Edward prepared himself to press the gas pedal until it broke through the car floor, something in the corner of his eye caught his attention. He searched for the thing or person, and found him, just when he was about to take a detour from the common pathway. Ed had the strange sense that the said man was someone important, and when he tried to ignore him and speed forward, a silvery glint stopped him. He didn't need to be told what the glinting thing was, for it was a glint of silver which he had once been so familiar with.

Instead of the gas pedal, Edward stepped on the brake pedal as hard as he could while drifting his car into the empty place next to the white pavement, ignoring the shouts and horns he earned. Slamming the door shut, Ed dashed with all his might to catch up with the man that had caught his attention, entering the dark hallway of the detour. His ragged breath came out as thin white clouds, disappearing and appearing as fast as Ed's breath came out.

Turning his head frantically, Ed was about to call out to him with a shout before the mysterious man appeared on the right corner. Dashing after him again, Ed closed the distance between them, but managed to let himself be unseen.

After he was close enough, Edward was able to prove his guess; the glinting silver thing was the thing he used to live with – the State Alchemist watch. The shining chains that hung from the belt to the pocket, he was certain that it was the same watch he had left when he quit the Amestris military. And if he was not mistaken - he hoped not -, the black coat the man was wearing had the symbol of alchemy near the shoulder part. The crown between a pair of wings, and the cross with a snake below; it was definitely a symbol of alchemy.

But how in the Gate was the person he was currently spying on be in a place like this, Earth?! So the strange feeling from before was because of the fact that he had something to do with Amestris - even the military - and the coincidence was Ed stumbling upon him in the strangest of place.

The mystery man disappeared again around a corner, and when Edward finally got through the dark detour, the man was already lost in the middle of crowds. He blended pretty well with the surroundings… so Ed was forced to use his instincts to at least catch a last look of the man.

And his instincts made him proud once again, for he was able to see the black-coated man for the last time; long, tied black hair disappearing around a corner once more.

Ed realized that he'd never be able to catch him again, so he returned to his abandoned car with a weird feeling tugging in his gut. At the very least he knew that the man had long and tied black hair… maybe with an awesome amount of luck he'd be able to see him once again. For Edward was totally certain of one thing - the man was not from this world. A new flicker of hope burned inside his heart, believing that he might have finally found a clue to return to Central - to get back to their loved ones.

"Maybe the Gate's still got some business to do with me after all."

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"So, Al, do you have anything to do tonight?" Dan asked Al, whom finally got out from class.

"Eh?" Al sounded like surprised, "and why would you ask me that?"

"I was just asking, wondering if you're able to accompany me to the movies tonight." Dan whistled, "can you?"

"It's not-so-common that you ask me about things like this… what's the occasion?" Al turned to Michael at the back, "know anything about it, Mike?"

Mike just grinned at Al. "Ask him. You'll find out why he's in such a good mood right now. Continue like this and we'll get a free dinner later tonight."

Al pretended to think, and only one guess came to mind. "Let me think. You've got a new girlfriend."

Mike patted Al's back, grin even wider now. "You've hit the bull's eye, boy. Very good."

Dan scowled at the two men next to him, and muttered, "keep your attitude and you're staying at home tonight." He turned to Al again, "so? Are you available tonight?"

Al looked up to the ceiling, and after pondering about it for a while, he shook his head slowly. "I don't think I can go with you this time… maybe next time? My brother and I have an important matter to discuss and solve tonight…" He faced Dan, "sorry."

Dan just smiled back at him, and patted him on the shoulder. "Don't mind it, Al. We both know that you only have your brother left, so we won't force you to come with us when you've got something even more important. We know where we stand between family and friend, Al." Dan then turned back to face the front, and let out a fake, tired sigh. "Which means that this omnivore behind you could eat even more now. And Al?" Dan called, and after Alphonse turned, "we hope you solve the problem you mentioned before with your brother."

Al just smiled back, and nodded slowly towards both Dan and Mike. "Hope so too… Brother has suffered more than enough until now, and I could only pray for his happiness to the Gate…" Alphonse trailed off.

Mike heard the last part, and immediately poked his head in. "What is the Gate, Al? Tell us."

Alphonse seemed to stop for a second, before deciding against it. "Nah, it's nothing. Just a phrase my brother and I used to use when we were only children."

Mike rubbed his chin, it seemed like Al was lying, but he believed the explanation nonetheless. "Funny phrase you use there. Kinda strange… and mysterious."

Al let out a nervous chuckle. "Yeah… it is weird… along with mysterious. We don't even know now how we first began to mention such a thing." But the Gate is strange and mysterious… even now they still didn't know the reason the Gate had sent them here, or the results they got because of dealing with the Gate and the connection it has with the Philosopher's Stone. "I guess I'll be seeing you guys tomorrow then?"

Dan waved a hand at him and walked towards his car, Mike tailing closely behind him. "See ya tomorrow, Al!" Dan yelled after him.

The younger Elric brother could only smile at their retreating backs, remembering the reason he couldn't go with them tonight. Ed still had something to reveal, so until that was done, he wouldn't stop and leave him be. He turned to the other side of the college, searching for his brother. But the older Elric was nowhere to be found, so Al tightened his scarf around him and strode over to the benches.

Letting the books land beside him, Al dropped to the starting-to-freeze wood, sighing again. Edward was oddly late to pick him up… he's usually here even before Al got out of class. Maybe he was in a trouble? When he was about to continue the thought of the possible troubles Edward might have stumbled upon, the said man came running, all the while calling, "hey Al!"

Al, upon hearing his brother's voice, stood up and took his books. "It's unusual that you're late, Brother, not that I'm complaining though." He examined his brother's expression; there was something that had changed from this morning when he'd seen him. It was more to the bright and cheerful side though… not the gloomy side.

"Tell you later, but it's something important!" Ed replied with ragged breath, since he had just come running to Al from the car park with the temperature at minus five. But he wasn't going to let this useful information just pass by, who knew, maybe Al would have a better idea to them on the way back home.

"Huh?" Was Alphonse's reply when his brother suddenly grabbed his arm and dragged him back to their vehicle. "Wait up, Brother!"

But Al's protest was ignored by Ed as he kept on dragging his brother, making him stumble a few times before reaching their car. But arrive they did, with Al's confused look on the back seat.

Ed heated the engine for a few seconds, before pressing the gas pedal until the black vehicle almost jumped forward. Al was thrown back by the jump, and had he not been gripping the front seat, his head would've hit the not-so-soft seat. "Calm down, Brother!"

"Al, you remember where the National Library was?" Ed asked.

Alphonse returned to his grip of the front seat and poked his head from behind. "Why so sudden?"

Ed slowed the car at last, and turned so that he could look at his confused brother. "Because… I found something that might lead us to the way to return?"

His reply was Al's widened eyes and the almost-choked like voice. "And just… how?"

"That's why I told you I'll tell you later, 'cause now I've got something to check up about the past research of alchemy in this world!" Ed replied a bit frankly, as he dodged another car and took a sudden turn at the traffic light, earning himself several klaxons from the other drivers and outraged yells from people passing by. "Where to turn now, Al?"

Alphonse examined the road around, and pointed to a bit of narrow road before them. "The left one is the common way to the library, but it's usually full of people and cars right now; the one, narrow alley in front is the shortest way to get there… but it's a bit too narrow for this car, don't you think?"

Edward's car skidded a bit when he took a sharp left move again, his eyes focused only on two things: The narrow road, and the way to get back to Central. "If only I could use alchemy to get that road a bit wider…" Ed muttered, "hang on Al, this one's gonna get a bit bumpy. Hope the car insurance covers this…"

The car came out of the alley with some of its parts missing, the obvious one was the right side mirror, lost somewhere back in the alley. The black paint was also scraped here and there, giving a clear view of the silvery-white metal beneath it. Ed made the car skid again, to the point that if the black vehicle went through that much of a challenge once more, it'll definitely break down into pieces. Luckily there was the car insurance thing.

Coming to a halt inside the car park, Al just stared at the scene his brother had caused behind them, the snow-covered bricks falling along the way and several people almost having a heart attack. Who would expect a car to appear from the barely wide enough alley with a speedy dash?

So Edward jumped out of the car, looking even more energetic than ever, followed by a tired looking Al. The former hummed an unknown song for Al, earning an increased eyebrow from some of the people passing by. The brothers entered the library, and immediately headed towards the history section.

They parted ways later; Ed to the right and Al to the left. Reaching onto the lowest part of the shelf, Ed grabbed a few books before trying to reach the higher ones…

…only to hop like a little child. Gate, how he hoped that he could at least be as tall as the bastard Colonel, he doesn't have to do things like jump to reach a book! So Ed conceded, and took a small set of stairs for him, and finally grabbed the damned book. Muttering more incoherent things, Ed sauntered out from the shelves, only to find Al grinning at the borrowing desk. A scowl found its way to Ed's facial expression, and he let the book fall with a _thump_ beside Al's chosen books. He need not check what books Al took, since he was certain that when concerning matters like this, Al had the ability to find the correct and good ones. "Shut up, Al." Ed grumbled.

Al let out a light-hearted chuckle, and then proceeded out after his brother. "And what about these books if we really find a way back?"

A small devious smirk hung on Ed's lips, and he continued to march forward with a whistle. "Say… why not let them search for their own books when we could get back home? Do some little tricks just for this one last time?" Ed chuckled mischievously.

Shaking his head, Al could only let out a sigh with his hands full of the books. They arrived at the broken car several minutes later, and after putting those books in the trunk the car moved again, now towards the direction of their apartment.

Half an hour later they had arrived at their apartment, both boys dragging themselves to the elevator with the books in hand. Opening the door into their apartment, the two of them fell onto the couch, books and the food sack left on the dining room table.

"So, when are you going to tell me about 'this important thing', Brother?"

"Be patient, Al. I need to sort these books out first, then I'll get to that."

And after several minutes of rapid book sorting, Al began to think his brother might never finish. But finish he did. They sat on the dining table, books beside them, with a bowl of salad in each their hands.

"Start now, Brother?"

Edward took a spoonful of his salad, before starting, "well, when you were at college earlier on, I was thinking of going to work for just a bit… you know, just for formalities." Edward shrugged, then continued, "after the market, I took the car to get to the office, but, well, on the way there…"

Al cut him off. "You met this 'important thing'."

Ed glared towards the man sitting opposite him, before taking another spoonful of salad and continuing again. "Right, anyway, as you said, I accidentally met this important thing. And what he brought is the thing that is quite important for this speech." Ed took another spoon, "since he has the State Alchemist watch on him."

Now Alphonse choked on his effort to swallow a mouthful of salad, and was trying to stifle a cough. "A _what_?"

"The silver watch I used to have, back in Central under the command of the Colonel." Ed smirked at his brother, "so I thought he must've had something to do with the Amestris military, or even the Gate."

After several coughs, Alphonse replied back, "well, that's a definite yes for me, Brother." He paused at the shimmering eyes, "but do tell me, Brother. Is it the _real_ thing you saw him with? Who knows, maybe it was just an imitation, or coincidence?"

Ed sighed. "Thought of the possibility, you know. But we alchemists have got a strange sense, like a sixth sense, when we see something or someone related to alchemy. That's quite a strong feeling I got when I saw him along with his watch," Edward paused, trying to recall some memories back, "and I was not mistaken that he had the symbol of alchemy on his black coat… coat similar to what the military has."

Alphonse rubbed his temple, deep in thought, before finally speaking again to an eagerly waiting Ed. "When that's the case, I believe you, Brother. But… what makes you think that this… man, has got something to do with our way back home?"

"The Gate, as much as I cared, wouldn't go so far as to send us something linked with the other side if it hasn't got anything to do with us. Punch me if I'm wrong, Al, but for this one time I want to be a bit naïve, that we'll figure out something to get us back home with the appearance… or help, of this one unknown man."

Al merely nodded, confirming his brother's last statement. When it comes to things like this, he also wanted to be naïve, trying to think like his brother. Maybe, just maybe, this man is the key to their returning to Amestris… and if it is, they'd sure be that no more Earthlings will ever pass through the Gate and enter the world of Amestris ever again.

"Then we had better restart our research again, Brother, if we're going to go back through the Gate."


	3. Chapter 3

Author's Note: God I've forgotten that this file existed in my folder! ==" And by the way, I have a crossover between FMA and APH in my mind and the prologue's nearly finished… so if you have some time would you spare it a glance and tell me how's it going? :D

- Chapter 3 -

**Munich, Germany**

Alphonse stirred in his bed, yawning and tossing around. After getting his blanket tied up on him, he stopped, facing the ceiling with brows furrowing in thought. He'd helped Ed with their research last night, leaving them only several hours to sleep.

But the instant and sudden research had proven them good, and those books explained about alchemy in this world, which was no far different from that in Amestris - except that in Amestris some people could do it without the transmutation circles. And it was obvious that back then, people of this world have absolutely no knowledge that such thing as the Gate's existence.

Rubbing his eyes, Al flipped over to glance at the clock on the coffee table next to his bed with bleary eyes.

_6.45 a.m._

Rubbing his eyes again, something clicked in his mind, causing him to jerk his head up with such speed that it nearly caused him dizziness. Yanking the sheets off, Al jumped from his bed and tripped upon his slippers, making him tottered forward for a few steps before regaining his balance back and blitzed through his door.

As he made his way out, he noticed that Ed was still asleep, and thought of waking him up first. Dashing towards the kitchen, Al frankly fumbled with the refrigerator content to find something to eat. Edward used this time to make his appearance.

"And just what are you doing, Al…?" Ed yawned, surprising Al. The surprise caused Al to bonk his head to the fridge's shelves, rattling the poor thing.

"Don't you realize that it's _this_ time already, Brother?" Al wasted no time in rubbing his head and continued his fruitless effort to find something to eat.

"But Al," Ed groaned, continued with a yawn, "it's _Sunday_. No classes on Sunday."

Alphonse stopped, like he was knocked by something. Slowly, he turned to face his brother. "…_Sunday_?" he repeated, voice clearly tinted with disbelief.

"If it's not, then why did I ask you to help me with the research last night?" Ed yawned again, and proceeded to the door to take the morning newspaper. "You'd probably forget, since you've been into the research last night very much."

Slowly taking his head out of the fridge, Al took out an egg and shoved it in front of Edward's face. "Well, since it's Sunday, do you mind if I asked you to cook me an omelet? You don't want me to cook by myself anymore, right?" Al hid his grin.

Ed failed again at his effort to suppress another yawn. "Just wait outside until I call you back." And the egg disappeared from Al's hand, along with few others from the fridge.

**Central, Amestris**

"Brigadier-General Mustang." Riza called shortly. Roy tried to ignore her.

"Brigadier-General _Roy_ Mustang." Riza repeated herself again. Now it was a bit harder to ignore the call with shivers running down his spine.

"Sir, are you going to respond," Riza paused for a second, "or should I get this to you?"

Roy immediately ceased any actions that might cause further harm when he felt the cold tip of the metal on his forehead. Raising his hands, "okay, I'm listening now! So…" Roy paused when the gun started to lower itself, "take it down and put the safe back." Sighing when the gun finally had its original place back at Riza's holster, Roy started, "and what brought you here, Lieutenant?"

"I assume you've read the reports I delivered yesterday?" At a nod, Riza continued, "well, here's more. Especially reports about those small-sized chaos in some of the north-west area." Riza finished with a new stack of paper on Roy's desk.

Roy casted a glance on the newly added stack before returning his attention to the Lieutenant. "I see. Anything more you have to give to me?"

"If there are no more papers that had not been delivered yet, then it's that for today." Riza scanned the left stack of papers, "though if I should say, sir, you rarely do the paperworks this quick. Is there a problem?"

"Well I guess I was just in the mood to work… or else. Don't know." Pausing, Roy hid a somewhat sad smile behind his intertwined fingers, "don't you have anything better to do than to wait for me here?"

"Since you seem to be doing your work for real this time, I don't think I need to worry about it anymore. But take care of yourself so you don't get sick, sir."

"I'll take that into my mind. Anything else?"

"That's all I have to say, sir." Riza finished.

"Very well then. You are dismissed." Roy finally said.

Riza gave a salute to her superior and walked out of his office. Closing the door with a click, Riza gave a light-hearted sigh.

"Hey, what's up with the General?" Havoc asked as soon as she sat down, noticing Riza's strange mood.

"Nothing wrong, but I wonder what's making him does his work for real… just _now_." Pulling a pen and releasing the cap, she continued, "it's as if there's something different with him."

Havoc twirled his pen between his fingers, spinning his body to cast a glance to the outside. "Well, at least he's working properly now. Isn't it what you've always told him to do?"

Riza stopped working for a second, considering Havoc's opinion. She then shrugged, and resumed her work. "Yeah, maybe."

Inside the office, after Riza went out, instead of continuing his paperwork, Roy paused a moment to take a rest. At that brief moment, Roy chuckled, albeit the bitter feeling at the sound. Sighing, Roy spun his chair, now facing the window.

"Problem, huh?" Roy massaged his temple, "if there is any problem with me, that is my own helplessness…" Roy trailed off, now staring towards the white ceiling above him, "Gate help me."

**Munich, Germany**

"Ed, are you finished with the egg?" Alphonse called from the family room. The TV shows were pretty boring this morning, nothing else other than news and the government conditions. And what was his brother doing? Usually he didn't need more than 30 minutes in the kitchen just for an omelet. His stomach was already complaining because of the lack of content inside.

"Yeah, and what could I do with an almost dead stove? Blow the gas off so then it explodes, ruining the egg and blowing my head off? I've had enough problems with the last time something short of a machine exploded!" came the ruffled reply from the kitchen, "and I'm not risking any chance of my hair being destroyed because of an exploding machine anymore!"

The memory flew back to Al's mind, when they traveled to Ishval with a tractor Winry had fixed. The poor tractor blew up because Ed slapped the center of the machine, ruining his hair. As the thought finished, Al couldn't help but to grin at the blowed-up Ed, remembering that his brother went into a bad mood shortly after. Well, that's his older brother for you.

Grumbling, Ed thought of any other way to get the stove on, but found none. "If only I could do fire alchemy, I'd throw this thing out and get myself a new pan… after all, all I need to do is to snap my fingers only, right? Like what that Mustang loves to do…" Edward circled the stove, still thinking of other way to get it on. He turned the switch on and off several more times, before the small spark of fire appeared.

His face shone with joy, the damned stove finally worked! So he turned it several more times, the flame getting gradually bigger. And at the last turn, the fire finally burned at the maximum, but it was way too big for the size of the counter and the closet above. The result was that the closet's bottom part was black, covered with ashes, and the stove finally working after 45 minutes since he first entered the kitchen.

The cooking process, from his fruitless effort to turn the stove on until the omelet is ready took Ed almost an hour, but finish he did. Bringing both plates out of the kitchen, Edward was welcomed by a hungry-looking Alphonse on the dining table, ready with his fork and knife on both hands.

Slicing his part, Ed said, "so I finally found one more reason to hate this world for not letting alchemy usage."

"Well, at least you found a way to get the omelet done, Brother." Al munched, and swallowed his food, "I guess you were hoping that you're able to use fire alchemy here, right?"

Edward merely nodded, thoughts already somewhere else.

"And where are you going to go today?"

"I guess I'll get to my office for a moment, just to take what's new from the works. Then maybe grabbing some more books from the library, and then get back here." Ed paused, considering the chances and possibilities, "except if I meet the mysterious man again."

"As much as I love having your company in our research, Brother, I'd be even happier if you could 'accidentally' bump into this man and drag him off somewhere remote to make him spill out anything he knew. If not, or if it's not the right person, you could just knock him down to make him forget everything."

"You're making me sound like an escapee psycho, Al." Ed stared at the man sitting opposite him.

"Yeah, I know." Al grinned, "but I meant what I said. Besides, that's the main point here. If not because of him, then why would we be doing a research on a larger scale than usual now?"

"Point taken." Ed answered shortly, resuming on his breakfast. "So I suppose you'll continue the research while I go to the office… and beat the mystery man down if I found him?"

"Just relax, Brother, I'll get even deeper into alchemy of this world before you even noticed it." Grinning somehow wolfish-like, Al continued, "just go out there and finish your job so you can go meet our favorite Colonel."

Edward was almost inside his room to take a bath, before he paused at his tracks. Feeling a blush creep onto his facial features, Ed shouted in a strangled-like tone. "And whoever said things about wanting to meet the bastard?! I only said that I wanted to go back to Cen-Amestris, didn't say anything about meet him!" With that, Ed entered his room with a slam.

Al could only smile playfully and sighed, his brother could be so dense at times. He was the one who brought the matter into the hands first, and now he was denying it? It was easy to judge how he felt about the Colonel just there… speaking of it, wasn't the Colonel a Corporal before he went into this world? Hadn't he got a promotion already for his actions with Major Armstrong when the Earthlings assaulted Amestris? Shrugging, Al let the matter flow out by itself, continuing on his food. _Oh well, I don't really have to worry about that. At least he's got his subordinates still - except for my brother - and his fire alchemy. What could possibly go wrong with him?_

Inside his bedroom, Ed tried to clear his face from the pink blush that has been persistent on staying there. Al only said something about meeting the Colonel, what was so strange about it? It was normal for him to meet the black-haired man; to hand over his reports; when he'd have to fight against him in the State Alchemist exam; so why was he blushing only _now_? Since it looked like the blush won't leave him anytime soon, he decided to enter the washroom and let the pink tint disappear on its own.

A few moments later Ed emerged from his room, clad in a long-sleeved jacket and pants. He found Al back on the couch again, with a bottle of milk on the coffee table next to the black couch. The TV was on, and it seemed like Al was quite serious in observing the news.

Grabbing his grey coat from the jacket pole, he called, "hey Al, I'm out to the office, okay? Continue the research while I'm gone!"

Al turned to his brother, and then waved a hand casually. "Don't worry about me, worry about yourself, Brother. After all, you need your automail repaired, and some more parts of you to be fixed."

"Yeah, I know." And after the door shut closed with a click, Edward wondered what Al had meant when he said the last part. _Some parts of me...?_ Ed thought, _I wonder what that was supposed to mean._

So Ed strode over to the stairs, not feeling for any elevators right now. He descended down the stairs, and met the grandpa owner of the apartment. He felt like dropping by for a hello, so he approached the sitting old man, who was drinking a cup of tea.

"Hey there, Carlos." Ed greeted casually.

The old man turned, and his eyes shone with some happiness. "Oh, hey there, Ed." He paused to take a sip of his tea, "so morning? Where's Al?"

"He's there in the room, reading some books. After all, there is no class at Sundays, and since I kinda abandoned my works, I need to get to the office to get them done." Edward replied, feeling at ease with the older man.

"Well, suit yourself then. I'm always around here if you need me, okay? I don't want you run around yelling and asking for help if you couldn't find me."

"Yeah, I know. Whoever else would we ask for help if it's not you, Carlos?" Ed smiled, "I guess it's a bye for now."

"Bye to you too, Mister Elric." The gramps returned the smile, and sipped his tea again.

Edward felt his heart a bit lighter than usual after the conversation with Carlos… he hadn't met the old man for several days. He's like a grandfather figure Ed and Al could never have, so the two brothers respected him very much. A veteran of the World War I, he's still got some sense of humor and taste in furnishing even in his old days. It was kind of bad to leave him so suddenly if he's found the chance to return to Central, the gramps has been very nice and caring towards them.

Starting the car engine, Ed turned on the heater and put the red scarf next to him. It was going to snow today, so he needs to get to the office quickly and home as fast as possible. Though that wouldn't be the case if the mystery man showed up again. The engines roared, and the car slowly moved to the bigger road.

After about 30 minutes, Edward was already in front of the white building that was his office. So the Germans knew also when to be clever and leave the busy life on Sunday too… the road was pretty much free of cars and people. They were probably still asleep, or just too lazy to go out in the cold weather. He poked his head out of the windowpane, and the guards immediately let him in. That's one of the advantages of being someone important in the politics.

Ed parked his car on the nearest spot to the building entrance, and went out with his red scarf. He missed his red jacket somewhat, having it around here now would've helped him very much, since the jacket was not so thick but warm.

Going inside the building, Edward immediately entered his office on the second floor. He noticed that the stack of papers hadn't really increased since the last he'd been here. So those people knew better to give those works to other people other than him. Not like he'd just abandon those reports there, he's just lazy to do it when he's not in the mood. After all, he wasn't the politics-type person, and he doesn't really involve himself into the politicians, even if his job was one of the most important among them.

Sorting through the papers quickly, and scanning them, Ed divided them into the important ones from the unimportant ones. The unimportant ones were almost thrice the height of the important ones, so he slumped back on the fluffy couch to read them more cautiously. He took the pen from his breast pocket, and scribbled his signature on some parts. Pulling a pencil from the breast pocket also, Ed added several additional notes for them to notice their mistakes or the stupid words and points.

After about an hour, Ed finished his work and dragged himself out of the fluffy couch. He went out of his office to get into the front desk one level below, only to see that the said place only had two people in it.

On of the workers, seeing Edwards's arrival, immediately stood by on his place to serve the blonde. "And what may I do for you, Sir Elric?"

Rubbing his head, Ed said, "just tell those people that usually give me the report to take the short stack in my office only. Tell them that those reports have a few mistakes, and inform them that they could burn the tall stack, since it's pretty much useless or plain nuts."

The employee scribed what Edward had just said, and after he finished with Ed's notes, he asked again, "is that all? Or do you have anything else to tell them, Sir?"

"Well, I guess that's all for today. And could you not call me with that unimportant addition of Sir? It's only a title, just call me by Mister and that's enough. Am I clear?" Edward asked back.

The employee could only gulp nervously, and nodded his head. "Yes, Mister Elric."

Edward laughed light-heartedly. "Oh come on, don't be that nervous. I'm not gonna eat you, so just stay cool. And don't forget to tell them what I've said, okay?"

Letting out a relieved sigh, the employee answered, "okay, Mister Elric."

Going out of the building with a grin plastered on his face. Really, that employee should be taught on how to handle people like himself more. He didn't have anything to scare him from the beginning, he was just somewhat annoyed by people calling him Sir. He entered his car again, now directing himself towards the National Library.

15 minutes later he had arrived at the library, now on the history part again.

Searching for some better books than yesterday, Ed moved around the shelves in a circle, a bit confused on what to get. After several confusing moments, he finally found about ten books, all of them thick enough to bonk someone on the head and make him unconscious. So he brought the books to the borrowing counter, and waited for the librarian to finish the note of the books.

While waiting for the librarian to finish her job, Edward's eyes scanned the huge room, and landed on something familiar near the entrance. The glinting thing caught his attention once again.

It was the State Alchemist watch!

Eyes moving from the watch to the facial features, Ed could feel a glare directed towards him from the very direction he's examining, but he could only see the black, tied hair since the man had already turned himself. And he was still wearing the same black coat from yesterday also.

Ed hurried the librarian to finish her job, and a few seconds later he found himself running after the mystery man. His right part was heavy because of the books, and that alone is enough to slow him down.

The man disappeared in an alley next to the library, and Edward wasted no time in closing their distance. When he could finally see the man clearly, he shouted the only thing that came into his mind at the time.

"Hey, you!"

But the man ignored him and kept walking, as if nothing had happened. Ed just noticed now that the black military coat was not wore by the man, but was only covering his back. So that's why the coat waved behind him; he was wearing it like the Colonel. Feeling a vein pop out from his forehead because of the ignorance, Ed yelled once more.

"Hey you, wait up!"

The man ignored him again.

Edward took the top book, and threw it at the man's direction. Now they were already close enough, so Ed was certain that his throw will not miss.

But it seems like his throw miss this important one time. The man had dodged the book like he saw the thick thing! It was like throwing a dart to a ghost!

The man then stopped after the book flew past him, and turned to see Edward.

His dark blue eyes - almost like black… or is it black? - pierced right through his own gold eyes, causing Ed to momentarily stop in his effort to catch him. It was a very sharp and direct look, empty of any feelings Edward could mention at the moment. When he finally recovered from the shock, Edward bolted towards the man, books left behind. His automail hand was curled into a firm fist, ready to land a blow at this man whenever needed.

When he was finally able to land a punch on the man, he could only stand there, hands and body trembling; eyes looking down towards the pathway.

The man didn't shift; hell, he didn't even move a muscle! And Edward already mustered enough power to at least break someone's skull! It was like punching a steel gate… Ed's eyes moved to look at those black, bottomless-like eyes, and saw them staring right back at him.

The taller man lifted his left arm to grab Edward's automail wrist and removed it from his stomach. Pulling it upwards so now he's on eye level with Edward, whose trembling already stopped, though still for some seconds later.

"Be careful, Fullmetal," the man finally spoke, and he stared - which is more like a glare to Edward - directly, "or I might just rip this automail hand off."

He released his vicegrip grab on Ed's wrist and let the blonde fell down, starting to tremble again. Turning without even any more words, he left Edward on his knee, quivers ceasing once more. He disappeared without any signs that he was there on the next turn to an even darker alley.

Edward finally stopped shaking, and raised his heads to see that the man had disappeared again. He raised to his feet, and looked at his gloved hands. That guy was even stiffer and far more rigid than any people he had known! At least when you was hit by something steely, bend yourself or shift a little… but he acted like nothing ever landed on his stomach! He was sure that the force of his punch before could make Al when he was in the armor back then stumble backwards! So… who was that guy really? Or even more, _what_ was that guy?

With that in mind, Ed picked up his fallen books and walked back slowly to his car. What was he going to tell Al now; that he was easily beaten with only a glare and words from the man?

Well, at least Edward had made sure that on thing is definitely right; the man was from Amestris… and at least he's got something short of a connection with the Gate. The aura, even on a very small amount, for someone like Ed who had been dealing problems with the Gate was enough to differ him from normal people. Now it was far easier to find the man when he's got a clue to find him.

A/N: Not beta-ed, so feel free to point out mistakes :)


End file.
